Upender



C. E. POPE.

UPENDER.

APPLICATKON FILED MAY 22. 1920.

Patented Dec. 5, 1922..

3 SHEETS-SHEET I- W l/[/\/ TUE". $46 4. M

C. E. POPE.

UPENDER.

APPLICATION HLED MAY 22. x920.

2 2 9 II H Van q 0 es Dm M m m P C. E. POPE.

UPENDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 22 I920.

Patented Dec. 5, 1922.

3 SHEUS -SHEET 3.

Patented Dec. 5, 1922.

UNITED STATES CHARLES ELMER POPE, O1 SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, ABBIGNOR 'IO GREAT NORTHERN PAPER COMPANY, OF MILLINOCKET, MAINE,

MAINE.

CORPORATION UPENDER.

Application filed Kay 22, 1920. Serial N0. 383,528.

To all whom it may concem:

Be it known that I, CHARLES Emma Porn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sprin eld, in the county of Hampden and tate of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in an Upender, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to machines for handling heavy bulky articles, and it is especially concerned with the problem of andling large rolls of paper. The web of paper delivered by a paper making machine is wound up into a large roll which is wrapped and sealed preparatory to being shipped. Frequently these rolls are five or six feet in height, three feet or more in diameter, and weigh in the neighborhood of a thousand pounds. Consequently it is not an easy matter to handle them. The rolls are delivered from the paper making machine in a horizontal position and it is necessary to set them up on end in order to economize floor space. They must also be transported from one part of the plant to another and to the cars in which they are to be shipped. It is the chief object of the present invention to devise an apparatus with which this handling and transporting of bulk rolls of paper can be conveniently accomp ished.

The nature of the invention will be readily understood from the following description .when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying the invention in the form at present preferred;

Fig. 2 1s a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 1; and I Fi 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showin t e machine in a different position.

he construction shown comprises two grippers 2-2 mounted to enga e opposite sides of the roll R of paper to ehandled. Each grip er preferab y consists of a cast- 60 ing or body portion 3 with a heavy sheet metal part 4 secured thereto, and each gripper is curved to fit approximately the curvature of the roll of pa er. Each of the members 3 is provided with a short shaft 5 and these shafts are rotatably mounted in the forward ends of arms 6 and 7, respectively. For the purpose of holding these grippers on the arms a bolt 8 is threaded into the end of each shaft and bears against a large washer 9 that overlies the face of the arm 0 posite the gripper. This construction ena les the grippers to swing freely on their respective arms 6 and 7.

These arms are of very heavy, sturdy construction, as shown in the drawings, and the end portions of these arms opposite the grippers are internally threaded to receive oppositely threaded members 10 and 12 fixed securely on a shaft 13 that is mounted in suitable hearings in the frame members 14. This construction enables the arms 6 and 7 to move toward and from each other when the shaft 13 is rotated, the direction of this movement depending,.of course, upon the direction of rotation of the shaft, and it also enables the arms to swing upward and downward relatively to the shaft 13. Normally, due to the manner in which the arms are mounted, they rest on a bar 15 that connects the opposite frame members 14. In order to make the arms swing in unison, they are provided with upwardly extending projections 16 and 17 respectively, Fig. 2, which are drilled horizontally to receive a long bar 18.

For the urpose of rotating the shaft 13, a worm w eel 20 is mounted fast thereon and meshes with a worm 21 keyed to a shaft 22 supported in bearings 23 and 24, respectively, in the frame 14. This shaft lies be low and at right angles to the shaft 13 and it has secured fast thereto a worm wheel 25 meshin with a worm 26 fast on a shaft 27 which is driven by an electric motor 28.

This entire apparatus is mounted on. an auto truck 30 which may be of an suitable type. That shown is of the e ectrically dr ven type much used in railway stat ons, warehouses and the like. It is provided with a platform 31 on which the operatlve stands and with a lever 32 by which he controls and steers the truck. The details of the operating and driving mechanism of the truck are not shown since these details of construction form 110 art of the resent invention and any suita le form 0 truck can be used. The electrically driven type, however, has the. advantage that it is easy to control, simple to operate, and provides a convenient source of power for the motor 28. The operation of this motor may be governed by a controller 34.

Assuming now that it is desired to upend a roll of paper lying in a horizontal position, the truck is advanced toward the end of the roll with the arms 6 and 7 in their lower ositions, as shown in Fig. 1, the axes on which the grippers 2-2 turn being, in this position of t e arms, afiproximately level with the axis of the roll The grippers at this time are separated by a distance greater than the diameter of the rollso that they pass freely over the opposite sides of the roll into the position shown in Fig. 2. The motion of the truck is stopped when the parts are in substantially the position shown in the latter fi re and the motor 28 is then set into operation b a movement of the controller handle 34. his motor is driven inthe proper direction to force the arms 6 and 7 toward each other and thus cause the grippers 2-2 to move into engagement with the opposite sides of the roll. It will readily be appreciated that the operatin mechanism for these arms is such that it will exert a very powerful action to force the arms toward each other and thus cause the grippers to exert a heav compressing or gripping action on the rol :It will also be observed that these arms are both free to swing upwardly, that is, in a clockwise direction about the axis of the shaft 13, as the parts appear in Figs. 1 and 3, and that the direction of rotation of the shaft 13 is such that when the movement of the arms toward each other is stopped by the compression of the roll between the grippers, the further rotation of the shaft 13 produces such an upward movement, thus lifting the end of the roll held between the grippers. The continued upward movement of the arms draws the truck and the roll R toward each other, or the truck may be started up slowly at this time and advanced toward the roll, the result of these operations being to raise the roll from a horizontal osition, as it appears in full lines in Fig. 1 into an upright position, as shown in dotted lines in said figure. In other words, it upends the roll.

If, after having upended the roll as just described, it is desired to transfer it to some other point, it is merely necessary to maintain the motor 28 in operation, thus raising the arms 6 and 7 still further and causing them to lift the roll R off the floor. The rotation of the motor 28 may then be sto ped by a proper movement of the controller liandle and, while the roll is thus held in its elevated position, the truck 30 may be moved in the usual way to carry the load to the idesired point.

no to the worm gearing through which the arms 6 and 7 are oper-- ated, the weight of the roll R will be ineffective to reverse the motor. In other words, this driving mechanism being irreversible under the weight of the load will maintain the load in its elevated osition. Whenever it is desired to deposit t e load, however, it is merely necessary to stop the motion of the truck 30 and move the handle of the controller 34 in the roper direction to reverse the motor 28, w en the arms 6 and 7 will be lowered until the roll R rests on the floor. A further lowering movement of thearms at this time is prevented due to the grip of the members 2-2 on the roll, and consequently the next movement of the arms 6 and 7 will be a releasing movement;

that is, a movement away from each other to release the hold of the gri pers on the roll. Thereafter the arms wil drop until further downward movement is arrested b the engagement of the arms 6 and 7 wit the bar 15. The truck ma then be backed awa from the load and d i'iven to any desire location.

It should be noted that the grippers 22 are not centrally pivoted. That 1s, the axis of the pivot on which each gripper is sup ported is above the center of gravity of gripper as it appears in Fig. 1. Consequently, the gripper normally assumes the directional positlon in which it is shown in full lines in this figure due to the influence of gravity. This holds the gripper with the axis of the curvature of its gripping face in a horizontal position where it is ready to pick up a horizontal roll. In some cases,

owever, it is desirable to use this mechanism for transferring upright rolls from one position to another. For this purpose each gripper is provided with a latch or swingmg stop 36 which normally rests against the face of the gripper in an inoperative position. Whenever desired, however, it may be swung into a position at right angles to the gripper, as shown in Fig. 3, where it will rest on the upper surface of one of the arms. This latch is mounted on the heavier side of the gripper so that when the gripper has once been placed in the position shown in this figure it will be held there by gravity. For this work also it is desirable to support the grippers at a different elevation, and this object 1s conveniently accomplished by providing a chain 37 connected at one end to,

The operations necessary to raise, transport and release the roll will be obvious from the foregoing description.

. ally supporting said grippers,

said rolls, means for said grippers for moving them to- Due to the nature of the forces exerted on the shaft 22, the bearing 24 is designed to support this shaft both against "endwise thrust as well as against radial movement. When the upender is to be used on rolls that vary substantially in diameter, it Wlll be desirable to adjust the lower limit of the swinging movement of the arms 6 and 7 and this may conveniently be done by providing each arm with a stop screw, not shown, arran ed to engage the bar 15.

v hile I have herein shown and described the best embodiment of the invention of which I am at present aware, it will be understood that this embodiment may be modified in many particulars without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention. It will be obvious to anyone skilled in the art that the threads may be varied to suit the requirements of the work.

What is claimed as new is:

1. A,machine for handling large rolls of paper comprising, in combination, an auto truck, and means mounted on said truck for raising one of said rolls into an upright elevated position and supporting the roll in said position while it is transported.

2. A machine for handling large rolls of paper comprising, in combination, a truck, means mounted on said truck for grasping a horizontal roll of paper by opposite sides thereof, raising said roll, and automatically tipping the roll into an upright position during the raising thereof.

3. A machine for handling large rolls of paper comprising, in combination, concave grippersto engage opposite sides of one of and supporting and operating ward each other to grip a roll and to raise them when said movement is arrested by the compression of the roll.

4. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, grippers to engage opposite sides of an article, arms pivotand means operating through said arms to move said grippers toward and from each other and to raise and lower said gri pers.

5. A: machine 0 the character described comprising, in combination, a pair of grippers mounted to engage op osite sides of an article, a pair of arms'on t e ends of which the respective grippers are ivotally mounted, a shaft having opposite y threaded portions on which said arms are mounted, said arms having internally threaded parts to engage respectively with the threaded portions of said shaft, and means for rotating said shaft.

6. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, a pair of grippers mounted to engage opposite sides of an article, a pair of arms on t e'ends of which the respective grippers are mounted, a shaft having 0 positely threaded. ortions on which sai arms are mounted, said arms having internally threaded parts to engage respectively with the-threaded portions of said s aft, 9. motor, and worm gearing connections between said motor and said shaft for rotating the shaft.

7. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, a pairof grippers mounted to engage opposite sides of an article, a pair of arms on the ends of which the respective ed, a shaft having oppositely threaded portions on which said arms are mounted, said arms' having internally threaded )arts to engage respectively with the threa ed portions of said shaft, means for rotating said shaft whereby said rotative movement is operative to force said arms toward and from each other, and means for limitin the swinging movement of said arms on said shaft.

8. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, rippers to en gage opposite sides of an artic e, and a single operatlng mechanism for moving said grippers into and out of gripping engagement with the opposite sides of said article and for raising and lowering said grippers to raise andlo'wer the article.

9. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, grippers to engage opposite sides of an article, a single operating mechanism for moving said grippers into gripping'engagement with the opposite sides of said artic e and for lifting said grippers to raise the article, and an auto truck on which said operating mechanism and grippers are mounted.

10. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, two grippers grippers are pivotally mount;

for grasping an article between them, two,

arms 011 which said grippers respectively are pivoted, mechanism for operatin said arms to move said grippers towar and from each other and to raise and lower said arms, and positively acting means to support said arms in a predetermined elevation.

11. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, a pair of arms for gripping an article between them, and mechanism irreversible under the weight of said article for moving said arms to grip or release the article and for raising or lowering it.

12. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, grippers to engage opposite sides of an article, arms supporting said grippers, means operating through said arms to move said grippers gage opposite sides of an article, arms supporting said grippers, means operating through said arms to move said grippers toward and from each other and to raise and lower said grip ers, said grippers being mounted to be he d normally y gravity In a given directional position, and meansjor utilizing gravity to hold said grippers in a different position.

14. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, grippers to engage opposite sides of an artlcle, arms supporting said grippers, means operating throu h said arms to move said grippers tower and from each other and to raise and lower said rippers, a pivotal connection between each gri per and its cooperating arm supporting t e grlpper at one side of its center of gravity, and means cooperating with said arm to hold the gripper in a fixed relationship to sald arm.

15. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, a pair of grippers mounted to engage opposite sides ofan article, a pair of arms on the ends of which the res ective grippers are lvotally mounted, a s aft having opposite y threaded portions on which said arms are mounted, sa1d arms having internally threaded parts to engage respectively with the threaded portions of said shaft, a worm wheel fast on said shaft, a worm meshing with said worm wheel, a shaft on which said worm 1S mounted, bearings supporting said worm shaft against radial and endwise movement, a motor, and a worm gearing connectlon between said motor and said worm shaft for driving the worm shaft.

16. A machine of the character described comprising in combination, a pair of arms between which an article to be handled is gripped, a gripper ivoted to each of said arms, said grippers sing shaped to engage the opposite sides of said article, power driven mechanism for moving said arms toward and from each other and for raising and lowering said arms, said mechanism bein irreversible under the weight of said artic e, and an auto truck on which said arms and mechanism are mounted. j

17. A machine of the character described comprising, in combination, a pair of grippers mounted to engage opposite sides of an article, a pair of arms on the ends of which the respective grippers are ivotally mounted, a shaft having opposite y threaded portions on which said arms are mounted, said arms having internally threaded parts to engage respectively with the threaded portions of said shaft, a worm wheel fast on said shaft, a worm meshing with said worm wheel, a shaft on which said worm is mounted, bearin s supporting said worm shaft against ra ial and endwisemovement, power driven mechanism for rotating said worm shaft in either direction, and an auto truck on which said bearings and mechanism are mounted.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

CHARLES ELMER POPE.

DISCLAIMER.

1,437,647.-Uharks E 1mm Pope, S ringiold, Mass. UPENDER. Patent dated De oember 5, 1922. Disclaimer fi ed eoember 30, 1924, by the assignee, Great Northern Pope Gompany.

Hersh enters this disclaimer- To t at part of the claim in said specification which is in the following words, to wit:

1. A machine for handling large rolls of paper comprising, in combination, an auto truck, and means mounted on said truck for raising one of said rolls into afn upright elevated position and supporting the roll in said position while it is transportad.

"[ofia'al Gazette January 90, 19%.] 

